Sunday, November 30, 2008

Songs That Might Otherwise Pass You By

Songs That Might Otherwise Pass You By

**The podcast shownotes are in the post before this one**

Matt Hires, "Honey, Let Me Sing You a Song"

Let me play you a song. It's one of those songs that'll dig under your skin, and you'll find yourself humming it at odd times: In line to get tea/coffee in the morning, in traffic, at your desk at work, when you're doing the dishes...anytime, really. You'll wonder where you heard it. Was it a commercial or a TV show (because, of course, isn't that where all music comes from these days?**) You'll think about it again and again, wanting to hear the song immediately because it's made such an impression on you. Seriously--you're not even sure what it was like before you heard this song. You'll suddenly remember you heard it on that thing called "the internet". You'll rush to Google and---relief. You've found it. Go forth now; worry no further. (Geez--I'm writing pretentiously. I usually roll my eyes at this type of writing. I'm rolling my eyes right now. At my own writing).

**I'm not casting stones. I bounce everytime those dang iTunes commercials come on.

Imeem Site
Myspace
Video (live)


Sigh...Matt Hires is from the same state as me. Sigh...

Windom Earle, "Kitten Vs. Pegasus"

Perhaps it was my obsession with the movie Clash of the Titans that fueled the tone of this post, but there is something intriguing about a kitten facing Pegasus. I love both, and I believe both are equally worthy in spirit. But who is mightier? Sure, Pegasus has the mass, the speed and it can fly. But the kitten has...infinite cuteness. Innocence. Also, it can bounce high up. Much like the story of David and Goliath, I want to see the underdog (cat) show the world the path to victory. I have faith in the power of the eeky little meow. I also don't want to see a cat suffer, and I will go all hysterical if that happens, and no one (not even a mythical horse creature) wants that. No, they do not want to witness that.

Website
Myspace


Webkinz Pegasus horse

Versus


The springing kitty. Who will win?


Sea Wolf, "The Promise" (I had trouble downloading it using the browser Firefox--it kept only downloading part of the song. I finally got it to work using IE. Dangit. I really like Firefox.)

Usually when a guy says he'll do anything for you in the morning if you "love him tonight", I'm skeptical. In fact, I would be suspicious, annoyed and leaving, generally. However, there's such an intensity to this music that I would be (were I single) almost willing to jump in, second thoughts thrown out the window, along with some clothes. Alex Brown Church's voice has an aching quality, an earnestness that rings of sincerity, especially when he sings lyrics like "I'll touch the back of your hand and whisper the words". It's a degree of romanticism that's absent in a lot of newer songs. (The rest of the lyrics are both romantic and slightly bewildering). He seems to know the danger in beginning any romance. He sings "we think of the mystery and we think of the warning". I can think of a few times I've forgone wisdom in favor of mystery. I probably would believe that he'd keep his promise--whether I was right would be the subject of another song. I'd probably smile a little in rememberance everytime I heard this song, though.

Website
Myspace
From the PABLOVE Foundation benefit album
Buy the album through Urban Outfitters


Sea Wolf wishes the other wolves wouldn't tear apart his house while he's away. If only he had the kitten from above to protect him...

Episode 59, In Which The Space Age Trippy Monster Finally Comes and Gets Lola

Podcast Page
Direct Link
RSS Feed

Theme Music! Brazilian Girls, "Good Time" (Diplo Remix)
Website
Myspace

The Stills, "Being Here"
Website
Myspace

Adrienne Pierce, "Raise Our Voices Up" (I didn't get permission to post the song; however, I would like to mention that profits from the digital sales of the song "All That We Want" will be donated to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, according to her site)
Website
Myspace

Steve Smith, "Comedown Queen" (Um, oops. Looks like I waited a little too long to post this song. It's gone now. I've got such a backload of songs...I need to do more extra podcasts...)
Website
Myspace

Lissy Trullie, "Self-Taught Learner"
No website listed
Myspace

David Karsten Daniels, "Martha Ann" (See above note on Steve Smith)
Website
Myspace
Buy from eMusic

Kid Dakota, "Stars" (See above note on Steve Smith)
Website
Myspace

Passion Pit, "Sleepyhead"
No website listed
Myspace

Dub Pistols, "Speed of Light"
Website
Myspace

Sunday, November 23, 2008

Songs That Might Otherwise Pass You By

Down The Lees, "Alone On A Thursday"

Okay, so I love furtive, plaintive, pleading, emotionally wrought love songs. I love tortured orchestras of emotion: violins climbing a twisted vine, reaching for the high, daunting piano notes flaking off just above them. Instruments struggling to burst through the thicket, hoping to be the first to reach the sunlight. A dark, dusky, rich voice followed by a caterwauling Kate-Bush strangle. The singer says "Say you're mine, and I'll give you life". Taken as a straight plea for love, we could think she's talking to a would-be lover. Taken as a song about someone conflicted with her own wants, though, and we wonder if she's talking to herself. She could be promising freedom to her own emotions: If she could get control of her own emotions, she could cut through the thicket herself. "Each time you say goodbye, a little part of me dies and wants to stay alive". Is she telling a lover that their absence is painful? Or is she telling herself that each time she steps further away, she becomes a little more faded, a little more withered?

Website
Myspace
More Mp3s


Down The Lees is currently caterwauling. If you'd like to leave a message...


Horse Feathers, "Curs in the Weeds"

This song is as rustic as an old Oregonian barn: The singer's voice wavers as if time has degraded it, the elements rusting his resolve. The violins fleck the air, cutting up the surroundings like an old chainsaw: Part fiddle, part classic violin, part means-to-make-firewood. The lyrics are more dire than those folks in that American Gothic painting. The children "live in a house with no home". There's "dirt on the walls" and "blood in the yard". There's probably an old dog named Yeller, too. Oh, that book made me cry. I'm crying just thinking about it. I think I just need to go sit on the porch and rock myself 'till I feel better.

Label Site
Myspace


This is my brother Darryl and my other sister Darryl.


The Sadies, "Why Be So Curious, Part Three" (Not a direct link--link takes you to a download page where you can get the song).

You have the tortured, the morbid, the sad in songs, then sometimes you just have the optimistic. The lyrics have a positive missive: an affirmation that everything could all possibly be okay. He tells us to listen to "the most beautiful things" and pay them heed. The lyrics include what is now one of my favorite philisophical sentiments: "Don't poison the well with worry and fear". The music sounds like the message being conveyed: Buoyant, melodic guitars meet with smooth, easy vocals. The listener can't help being swept into the swell. The singer tells us to "watch the river and feel the flow", which is a little easier listening to him; He provides the flow for us. If you don't feel calmed after hearing this song, then listen to it again. It even helps me, and I'm what the philosophers and deep-thinkers call "high-strung".


Website
Myspace


Elvis-impersonator casting call? Set of the movie "Blow"? The band The Sadies?

Sunday, November 16, 2008

Songs That Might Otherwise Pass You By

Quatsch update: We had to let her go Tuesday, November 11th. Originally I had planned to take her in Saturday, but my regular vet wasn't open. Really, I wish we had looked for an open vet then because by Sunday I knew something was wrong. She was losing control of her functions, and her skin was red. I didn't know that those two days would make such a difference, though. When I took her in Tuesday (I was off Tuesday for Veteran's Day here in the U.S.), the doctor said she was in organ failure. I'm glad I didn't wait. I feel secure in my decision that it was time for her to go. I'd been so worried that I'd make the wrong decision: take her before it was time, or wait until nature takes her. I'm grateful that I made the best decision (though my timing was still off by two days). Still, the vet I took her to was the vet who performed most of the operations on her, and she was assisted by one of mine and Quatsch's favorite people, Julie. Julie cried with me because Julie had been with her through all of this ordeal. She'd picked Q up numerous times from my apartment when I didn't have a ride. She petsit last year when I went to Dragon*Con. She's helped me so much. I wish I could take Chester to Julie and Dr. Wiechman regularly, but unfortunately they both left my regular vet's practice and they're now located way, way on the other side of town.

In my own fashion, of course, I made a blog for Quatsch.

*Podcast show notes precede this post*

Miranda Lee Richards, "Early November"

The loveliness here smooths over my nervous impulses. It reins in my racing heartbeat. I find myself smiling a little bit. I feel reassured, like the calming metronomic sensation I used to get when I would swing in a hammock at my old boss' house. Swinging back and forth, over and over, is very stress-relieving. Her voice also hits the right note of wry, with a hint of wist. There's a little reverb surrounding her vocal delivery, which causes her voice to sound a little cracked. As pure as the song is, the producer and performer understands that "too pure" would be a bit "too vanilla". You have to add a little spice to the pleasant vanilla latte--otherwise you'll fall asleep. Hence the vocal cracks and the awesome guitar thrashes towards the end.

Website
Myspace


Miranda Lee Richards may not seem focused here, but her music is certainly focused


Brazilian Girls, "Good Time" (Diplo Mix) (The download is to the right, on this page)

Whereas the previous song was lovely, this song is fun. This song is just frikkin' cool. I feel like I'm dancing in a parade when I hear it--perhaps that's partly aided by the kazoo-sounding thing, which is fantastic. The lyrics comprise only one phrase: "Good Time". I believe that's all we need to know to enjoy this song. Well, we also have to have a healthy enjoyment for blips and bleeps. I love the blips, I love the bleeps, the hand claps, the shouting voices...I love it all.

Website
Myspace


Wait...is this a Kate Bush/Rage Against The Machine/young Christopher Lloyd Supergroup? SWEET!!!



Kate Bush, Rage Against The Machine, and a young Christopher Lloyd



























Flight of the Conchords, "Frodo, Don't Wear The Ring"

Okay, I'm cheating a little for the third song. I was over at my mom's house yesterday (who has HBO) and a Flight of the Conchords episode came on. I love this show and I love their songs. I thought "Wow...that would really cheer me up". Well, I only got to watch one ep today because I've spent most of the day researching music, recording the podcast and writing the blog. So, I decided for my third song I'm going to post one of the many Youtube clips for Flight of the Conchords videos.



Flight of the Conchords- Frodo, Don't Wear the Ring Ep 11 - video powered by Metacafe

Magical Bling Bling

Website
Myspace
Here are a few mp3s
Here are some live songs

Bonus: The Cure tribute album (stream)
My favorite is the version of "Catch", which is my favorite Cure song, anyway.

Cerulean's Love of Music, Episode 58, In Which Lola Realizes That The World Suffers From Loneliness When She Doesn't Post (J/K)

Podcast Page
Direct Link
RSS Feed

Theme Music! Brazilian Girls, "Good Time" (Diplo Remix) (Downloaded from Better Propaganda)
Website
Myspace

Brad Sucks, "Total Breakdown"
Website
Myspace

Longwave, "Sirens in the Deep Sea" (I got it from Spin, but the mp3 seems to be cut off now)
Website
Myspace

Travis, "J. Smith"
Website
Myspace

Bon Iver, "Skinny Love"
Website
Myspace

Brazilian Girls, "Good Time" (Diplo Remix) (Downloaded from Better Propaganda)
Website
Myspace

The Secret Dakota Ring, "The Fade To Black"
Website
Myspace

Hooray For Earth, "Want, Want, Want"
Website
Myspace

Mr. Gnome, "Night of the Crickets"
Website
Myspace

Sunday, November 09, 2008

Songs That Might Otherwise Pass You By

Kitty update: She's holding on only by virtue of scheduling. I originally had an appointment for her to, well, you know, go to that final appointment in the sky yesterday, but I had difficulty trying to find an empathetic vet assistant for that day (please--when I'm making arrangements to put my cat to sleep, don't say you'll have to "put her on ice" for the weekend) so I'm waiting until Tuesday because I have Veteran's day off. I'm going to spend the morning with her and then we'll take her out to my favorite vet and vet assistant who moved to the other side of town (when you live in the city with the largest land mass in the United States, "the other side of town" is a long way off.) Until then, we're hanging out. I'm trying to make sure she lasts until Tuesday.

Oh, some good news :) I heard KaiserCartel's "Oh No" in the grocery store. They're one of my top favorite new bands, and since I don't listen to the radio, I never know when one of the bands I listen to makes it to the population's consciousness. Their subconscious, at least.

We Landed On The Moon, "The Night Was Open"

This reminds me of the spirited indie music I started listening to as far back as the 80's. The first "independent" song I ever obsessed over was The March Violet's "Turn To The Sky" (Youtube clip). I listened to that song every day for years. Seriously--I was still listening to it in college and that was the early 90's. The vocals in "The Night Was Open" have this same clear, soaring quality--piercing through the surface of the song, sailing above the instruments. The music lets the vocalist lead, but it doesn't let itself become diminished. It's as much a star as the vocals. The guitar alternates between bright, starry notes and full, insistent charging. Each style representing the overall feel of that moment in the song: the song itself thrashes to a crescendo in some parts and then softens to a poignant, sparse echo, with only a few guitar notes and her lovely voice overlaying the space.

CD Baby site (the band's website redirects to their Myspace page)
Myspace

During the planning and discussion phases of going to the moon (hey, the trip doesn't plan itself)


Aquella Ilusion, "Como Yo Te Creo"

I do not know what the lyrics mean (I unfortunately don't know Spanish), but it sure is a pretty song. At 1:40, it's also over before it's done. I would love to hear more of the bright, lightly played piano. I'd love for the song to pursue the keyboard bit that ushers the song out. It starts to take a very prog-rock early 80's direction. I want to hear him get his ELO on. Though I wish there more to the song, the loveliness of the orchestration and the timelessness of the melody creates a song that's rich, full and consequently better developed than a lot of longer songs. I guess it's true: size doesn't matter. *ducks to avoid hurled tomatoes*


Website
Myspace
More songs at Music.download.com


Half of Aquella Ilusion


Retroactive:

Sufjan Stevens, "Casimir Pulaski's Day"

This song is about four years old, but it's one of my favorite songs ever. It's also one of those songs I can't listen to much because it makes me cry so much. It's a song about experiencing death second-hand. It's about someone very close to you dying slowly, gradually. While I'm not going to compare my situation to a human dying, it feels like it to me. Quatsch has been the closest to a child I've had, and to me she is my child. So, this is one of those songs I think about when I think about what's happening to her (though I hope I find some non-weepy songs to remind me of her, too)


Listen

Label site
Myspace


Thrift stores are great

Sunday, November 02, 2008

Songs That Might Otherwise Pass You By

Kitty update: Well, it's looking like this will be the week that we let her go. She stopped eating two days ago and she's having trouble walking because the nerve endings in the back half of her body are deadened. The vet insinuated, but didn't come out and say that the next logical phase would be her losing control of her faculties. I don't want it to get to that point so I plan to take her in sometime this week.

I hope y'all have been able to bear with me. I know my writing's been a little terser and shorter since I've been going through this. I'm exhausted from working and taking care of her. I probably won't be back to myself for a while. Please continue to bear with me.

*Podcast show notes are in the post before this one*

Frightened Rabbit, "Old, Old Fashioned (live)"

This is one of my favorite new bands, evidenced by the fact that I've featured them several times now. There's just something so complete about their sound. It reminds me of how I felt when I first heard R.E.M (the early years) or The Dave Matthews Band. It feels so perfect--like it came down from on high already crafted. It's "old-fashioned". Instruments so in synch that they couldn't be taken apart even if you tried. A vibe that makes your dang soul sing. It'll tear down your inhibitions so you end up saying things like "makes your dang soul sing".

Website
Myspace
(From their new release Liver! Lung! FR!)


Organs...now that's dang old-fashioned


Callers, "Tied About"

A haunting, spanish-style guitar snakes through this slow-burner. This isn't what burns you, though. This isn't what stings your heart. What does is her voice. It sears the tops of the notes and wrestles with the gutter. The sadness I hear in her voice seems to crack the air around her. The supporting voice attempts to wrap around her singed vocals, perhaps trying to blunt the edge, but no amount of cushion can muffle this pain. All you can do is feel the visceral experience of her heartbreak, her boredom and her loneliness. All you can do is try to pick out the ragged pieces of glass already sticking into you.

Website
Myspace
Buy at Rhapsody


She sounds sad in her song, but she seems quite happy here. I would be happy, too, if I were standing next to such a super-fly car. In green, no less!

Mr. No, "Election" (Streaming only, unfortunately. Scroll down on the page and click "play").

I couldn't resist a song called "Election". It's a nice post-post punk ditty--a little emo, but not obnoxiously so. It has a lot of energy behind it, but it's not overtly screechy like most of the emo music out there. Unlike a lot of the emo crap out there, it's also got its own personality. It doesn't sound like every other emo/neo-punk song out there. Speaking of voting, though...if you're a U.S. citizen, I hope you have voted or will have voted by Tuesday. I know a few people who aren't voting, and I don't get that. How will you ever be part of the discussion if you don't show up to the forum?

Website
Myspace
Lots more songs to download from this artist


This is exactly the type of picture I expect to see from a post-post-punk band :)

Cerulean's Love of Music, Episode 57, Good Music To Help Us Through Sad Times

PODCAST SHOWNOTES

Dude. I had all these songs saved up for Halloween. With everything that's been going on with me, though, I forgot. I suck. Oh well, I've got several great un-Halloween oriented songs here. I even, without thinking about Halloween at all, put a song on that could be construed as Halloween-oriented--"Rubber Bat". I can't believe I forgot to acknowledge my favorite holiday on here. I shouldn't be inclined to forget it; it's my birthday, too. Shows how preoccupied I've been.

Podcast Page
Direct Link
RSS Feed

Theme Music! Eux Autres, "Ecoutez-bien" (Downloaded from their website. Click to the right of the song where it says 3 MB, and then click download)
Myspace

Josh Pyke, "The Lighthouse Song" (The label asked me not to post the mp3)
Website
Myspace

Geographer, "Can't You Wait"
Website
Myspace

Hospital Ships, "I Want It To Get Out"
Myspace
(No website listed)
Buy at Rhapsody

Matthew Ryan, "American Dirt" (Live from Daytrotter)
Website
Myspace

Magic Wands, "Teenage Love"
Myspace
(No website listed)

The Sadies, "Rubber Bat" (from bloodshot records)
Website
Myspace

Miniature Tigers, "Cannibal Queen"
Website
Myspace